Hugh Watt was a physician and political figure in British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

. He represented Cariboo

Cariboo (provincial electoral district)

Cariboo was one of the twelve original electoral districts created when British Columbia became a Canadian province in 1871. Roughly corresponding to the old colonial electoral administrative district of the same name, it was a three-member riding until the 1894 election, when it was reduced...

 in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....

 from 1892 to 1894.

He was born in Fergus, Ontario

Fergus, Ontario

Fergus is the largest community in Centre Wellington, a township within Wellington County in Ontario, Canada. It lies on the Grand River about 25 km north of Guelph.-History:...

 and was the great grandson of James Watt

James Watt

James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...

. He became owner and editor of the Fergus News-Record. Watt studied medicine at the University of Toronto

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

 and then came to Barkerville, British Columbia

Barkerville, British Columbia

Barkerville was the main town of the Cariboo Gold Rush in British Columbia, Canada and is preserved as a historic town. It is located on the north slope of the Cariboo Plateau near the Cariboo Mountains east of Quesnel along BC Highway 26, which follows the route of the original access to...

 by way of San Francisco in 1882. He was surgeon in charge of the Barkerville Hospital form 1882 to 1895. Watt was also a member of the local school board. He ran unsuccessfully for a federal seat in 1891. Watt was elected to the assembly in an 1892 by-election held following the death of John Robson

John Robson

John Robson was a Canadian journalist and politician, who served as the ninth Premier of the Province of British Columbia.-Journalist and activist:...

 but was defeated when he ran for reelection in 1894. He moved to Fort Steele

Fort Steele, British Columbia

Fort Steele is a heritage town in the East Kootenay region of British Columbia, Canada. It is located north of the Crowsnest Highway along Highways 93 and 95, northeast of Cranbrook.-History:...

 in 1897. Watt served as Health Officer for the Fort Steele Mining District. He married Alice Nicholson, his second wife, in 1912. Watt later moved to Elko

Elko, British Columbia

Elko is located at the junction Highway 93 and Crowsnest Highway 3, to the north of the Roosville Canadian-USA border crossing. Elko is situated in a narrow valley in the rugged Canadian Rocky Mountains, in the heart of southeast British Columbia....

, where he died at the age of 73.